Canister type container and method of making the same



Nov. 17, 1964 J. A. FOSTER 3,157,303, I CANISTER TYPE CONTAINER AND METHOD OF MAKING THE SAME Filed Sept. 5, 1961 2 Sheets-Sheet l VIII/III 1 Gulf W, UM, 514M 1964 J. A. FOSTER 3,157,308

CANISTER TYPE CONTAINER AND METHOD OF MAKING THE SAME Filed Sept. 5, 1961 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 CA TTCD ms 7/ United States Patent 3,157,308 CANISTER TYPE CONTAINER AND METHOD OF MAKING THE SAME John A. Foster, Rockford, Ill., assignor to J. L. Clark Manufacturing Co., Rockford, 111., a corporation of Illinois Filed Sept. 5, 1961, Ser. No. 135,949 3 Claims. (Cl. 220-72) This invention relates to sheet metal containers of the canister type seamed around its upper end to permit hermetic sealing and having a cover with a depending skirt adapted to telescope down over the upper end of a tubular body.

The primary object is to construct the container body in a novel manner to permit flanging of the container end by endwise compression at low cost and in a high production type of end flanging machine.

Another object is to deform the metal of the can body in a novel manner so as to withstand the axial compres 'sion incident to flanging of the end of the body.

A further object is to provide a body construction which will permit of such flanging while forming a head around the body at the lower edge of the skirt of the container cover.

The invention also resides in the novel construction and arrangement of the deformations in the container body.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent fromthe following detailed description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of the improved canister type container.

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary perspective view of the container body.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the container body at one stage in its formation.

FIG. 4- is a fragmentary sectional view of a longitudinal element of the container body in the first step of its formation.

FIGS. 5 and 6 are similar fragmentary sections taken respectively along the lines 55 and 66 of FIG. 3.

FIG. 7 is a fragmentary sectional view of an element of the container body during flanging of its opposite ends.

FIG. 8 is a fragmentary diametrical sectional View of the parts of the body as assembled preparatory to the rolling of the top seal.

FIG. 9 is an enlarged fragmentary section taken along the line 9-9 of FIG. 2.

FIGS. 10 and 11 are views similar to FIGS. 8 and 9 but showing a modification.

In the drawings, the invention is shown for purposes of illustration incorporated in a canister type container having a tubular body 10 over which the depending skirt 11 of a cover 12 is telescoped to bring the curled edge 13 thereof into abutment or close to an annular head 14 spaced from the upper end of the body. The latter is formed from a flat piece of sheet metal rolled into a tube with the edges flanged and interlocked to form a sealed longitudinal seam 15.

The upper end of the container body is hermetically sealed by a disk 16 of aluminum foil or the like secured as by a layer 17 of thermosensitive cement against the top surface of a narrow radial flange 18 spaced inwardly and axially from the end of the body 10 in the final assembly and comprising the inner edge of a sheet metal ring 19 abutting against the end of the body and having an outturned flange 20 interlocked with an out-turned flange 21 on the end of the body, the two flanges being compressed radially together in a conventional seaming or crimping ope-ration to form an airtight so-called double seam 22.

In FIGS. 8 and 9, the seal supporting flange is disposed perpendicular to the axis of the casing body, this construction being preferred. When the sealed container is likely to be subjected to a substantial internal pressure, it is preferable as shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, to shape the flange 18 so that the force exerted on the disk 16 will be in an edgewise direction thus subjecting the plas tic layer 17 of cement to a shearing stress. For this purpose, the flange 18 is made of conical shape as shown in FIGS. 10 and 11. By die shaping or metal stretching, the outer margin 16 of the disk 16 is fitted closely against the top surface of the conical flange and secured thereto by the plastic layer the same as in the form first described. At the same time, the central portion of the disk wh ch covers the central opening defined by the flange. 18 is initially disposed perpendicular to the container To. prepare the body for closure of its ends, substan tially right angular and out-turned flanges 23 and 24 are formed at opposite ends in a conventional low cost flangeing operation involving the positioning of the partially formed body shown in FIG. 6 between two dies 25 (FIG. 7) and pressing of the dies together to cause the ends of the tube to bend outwardly and shape the flanges 23, 24 to the contours of the dies. When the ring 19 is fitted into the body after flanging thereof, an out-turned wider flange 26 on the ring comes into abutment with the flange 23 as shown in FIG. 8. After assembly of the body and the ring in this manner, the flanges 23, 26 are rolled together to form the double seam 22.

To enable the skirt 11 of the can cover to telescope closely with the upper end portion of the container body 10, the outer surface of this scam 22 is substantially flush with the body as shown in FIG. 9, the lower edge of the seam defining the upper wall of a groove 27 formed by contracting the end portion of the body to form an intuined shoulder 28. The latter may be formed conveniently by suitable radially movable die elements (not shown) in the same machine which converts the flat sheet metal blank into a tube (FIG. 4) and forms the longitudinal seam 15 in the conventional manner. The head 14 is formed in a similar operation in the same machine thus enabling the container body to be produced at a minimum cost.

In accordance with the present invention, the metal of the body 10 is deformed and shaped in a novel manner to withstand the substantial axial pressure incident to formation of the flanges 23 and 24 without danger of axially collapsing either .the head 14 or the groove 27. Such collapse of the head is prevented by forming the same as an annular series of arcs 30 angularly spaced apart in end to end relation so as to maintain the original contour of the intervening areas 31 of the body metal. The combined circumferential width of these areas is suflicient to avoid any possibility of axial buckling of the tubular body during the flanging operation.

Axial collapse of the parts of the groove 27 during the flanging is prevented by deforming the metal of the body to form reinforcements extending longitudinally thereof and interrupting the shoulder 28 at points angularly spaced around the latter. Herein, such reinforcements take the form of pairs of parallel Walls 32 extending longitudinally of the body 10 and defining the sides of shallow recesses 33 disposed below the groove and above the-beads 30. The bottoms 34 of these recesses are inclined as shown in FIG. 5, sloping axially from the original contour of the body tube to the bottom of the groove 27. As in the case of the beads 30 and the groove, the depressions 33 may also be formed in the body forming machine after the original sheet of metal has been rolled into a tube and seamed longitudinally. In deforming the metal radially to form the beads and the depressions, the body will be converted into the form shown in FIG. 3, the

extreme end portion 35 of the body being flared outwardly as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6.

After such flanging, the ring 19 with the foil cover 16 sealed therein is placed on the flange 23 as shown in FIG. 8. The assembly is then transferred to a crimping machine by which the flanges 23, 25 are rolled together in the conventional manner to form the seam 22 and complete the container body.

I claim as my invention:

1. A partially formed container having, in combination, a tubular body composed of sheet metal, an inturned shoulder extending around said body and merging with the bottom of a groove extending continuously around and near one end thereof, and a plurality of outwardly opening depressions in said body extending longitudinally of said body and interrupting said shoulder at points angularly spaced around the shoulder, the bottoms of said depressions sloping longitudinally of said body and each merging at one end with the bottom surface of said groove and at the other end with the outer surface of said body at a point spaced beyond said shoulder.

2. A partially formed container as defined in claim 1 in which the surface of said shoulder is frustoconical and converges toward said body end.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 476,309 Record June 7, 1892 485,851 Walsh Nov. 8, 1892 829,477 Kruse Aug. 28, 1906 1,754,456 Cadwallader Apr. 15, 1930 1,961,221 Hunter et al. June 5, 1934 2,181,150 Pittenger Nov. 28, 1939 2,251,987 Conway Aug. 12, 1941 2,335,260 Chamberlain Nov. 30, 1943 

1. A PARTIALLY FORMED CONTAINER HAVING, IN COMBINATION, A TUBULAR BODY COMPOSED OF SHEET METAL, AN INTURNED SHOULDER EXTENDING AROUND SAID BODY AND MERGING WITH THE BOTTOM OF A GROOVE EXTENDING CONTINUOUSLY AROUND AND NEAR ONE END THEREOF, AND A PLURALITY OF OUTWARDLY OPENING DEPRESSIONS IN SAID BODY EXTENDING LONGITUDINALLY OF SAID BODY AND INTERRUPTING SAID SHOULDER AT POINTS ANGULARLY SPACED AROUND THE SHOULDER, THE BOTTOMS OF SAID DEPRESSIONS SLOPING LONGITUDINALLY OF SAID BODY AND EACH MERGING AT ONE END WITH THE BOTTOM SURFACE OF SAID GROOVE AND AT THE OTHER END WITH THE OUTER SURFACE OF SAID BODY AT A POINT SPACED BEYOND SAID SHOULDER. 